Improved means for attaching forks and spoons to knives



UNITED STATESr PATENT Clarion.

KER & PERKINS, OF MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT.

IMPROVED MEANS FOR ATTACHING FORKS AND SPOONS T0 KNIVES,

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 33,730, dated November 19, 1861.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, NATHAN AMES, of Sau* gus Centre, in the county of Essex and Commonwealth of Massachusetts, have invented a new and useful Method of Attaching Forks and Spoons to Knives; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is an edge view of a knife with a fork and spoon attached, and Fig. 2 is a side View of the same.

Like parts are indicated by the same letters in both gures.

The nature of my invention consists, first, in confining to the blade K and handle YV of any knife a detachable fork or spoon, or both, by the elasticity of the fork or spoon and knife-blade, operating in combination with a button b, (which passes through a slot c in the blade,) and a pin P, which enters a hole h in the handle, as represented in Fig. 1, and, second, in so applying and attaching the fork to the knife that one of the outer tines x shall be iush or a little more than flush with the knife-edge to prevent the latter from cutting when handled or carried in a pocket without a sheath.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will now describe its construction and operation.

W is the knife-handle, of wood or other suitable material and of the usual shape and construction. y

Kris the knife-blade, confined in the handle by any of the methods in common use.

F is a fork of sheetsteel or other suitable metal, the general shape of which is plainly shown in the drawings. The general shape of the fork, as well as the number ot tines employed, may, however, be varied.

b is a button or headed stud projecting from the fork F, as shown in Fig. 1.

C (represented by the dotted line in Fig. 2) is a slot through the knife-blade, and C is another similar slot.

Pis a pin projecting about one-eighth of an inch from the handle part of the fork, as shown in Fig. 1.

h (represented by the dotted line in Fig. 1) is a hole in the knife-handle for the reception of the pin P of the detachable fork F, bymeans ot' which the latter is prevented from slipping in any direction in a plane parallel with the side of the knife-blade. Thus in order to conne the fork to the knife it is only necessary to pass the stud b through the larger part of the slot C and push it forward till it reaches the end of the narrow part, when the head of the stud extending each side of the slot buttons the knife and fork together. The handle of the fork is noW sprung from the knife-handle and swung over the latter until the pinP is over the hole h, when the combined elasticity of the knifeblade and the fork forces the pin into the hole, as represented in Fig. 1. To detach the fork its handle is sprung from the knifehandle till the pin P is removed from the hole h, when the fork is moved along so that the head of the button h can slip out ot' the larger part of the slot C.

S is a spoon of the ordinary construction, with the exception of the handle being bent into a peculiar shape, as represented in Fig. 1, and provided with a button b and pin P, similar to those on the fork, said button entering a slot C', Fig. 2, and said pin entering a hole h in the handle, as represented in Fig. 1. Thus it is obvious that the spoon is attached to the knife by the combined elasticity of the two with the button b, slot C', pin P, and hole it in the same manner as the fork is attached to the knife. It is obvious, however, that either the fork alone or the spoon alone can be attached to the knife, if desirable, or whenever only two of the articles are required, and the three utensils thus combined form an article Very compact, portable, simple, and cheap and very convenient for the use of Soldiers, sailors, hunters, excursionists and others.

Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. Coniining to the blade and handle of any knife a detachable fork or spoon, or both, by

the elasticity of the fork or spoon and knifeknife-edge to prevent the latter from cutting blade, operating in combination with a butwhen handled or carried in a pocket., subton b, slot C, pin P, and hole 7L, or theii1 stantially as described.

equivalents, substantially as and for the object speced. NATHAN AMES.

2. So applying and attaching zi fork to a Witnesses: knife that one of the outer tinesshall `be L. A. AMES,

flush o11 a little more than flush with the A. B. DAVIS. 

